A project can include many tasks, where a task generally refers to an activity to be performed. There are often situations when organizations are required to perform multiple related tasks, for example, as part of a project. The tasks may be related based on an overall objective, and may be required to be performed in sequence, in parallel, etc., for meeting the overall objective.
Resources are often used (or consumed) in the performance of the tasks. Resources generally refer to any people, goods, places, etc., required for the performance of tasks. The more resources assigned to a task, the smaller the duration of the task will likely be due to the increased resources. Further, a critical path is a path that includes a set of tasks connected by interdependencies, where the path spans across a timeline of a project. An example of an interdependency is a “finish-to-start” interdependency, which indicates that a successor task can only start if a predecessor task finishes. Thus, a delay of a task within the critical path will typically delay the overall project. Typically, a project manager is directly responsible for ensuring that a project meets a planned deadline. In a complex project involving many tasks, it is generally critical for a project manager to identify any critical paths contained within a project, and, if possible, eliminate them.